The National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC) is a busy bunch nowadays. From their national office to the local Guam Branch, activities are picking up.
NAWIC has made a national call for nominees for the Carol A. Kueker Construction Education Visionary Award. The award program recognizes on a national level the educator or advocate for and dedication to construction education. This honor is carved out for a non-member of NAWIC who has worked aggressively to promote construction a a viable career path. Members have until March 15, 2013 to submit awards packets to the NAWIC Educational Foundation based in Florida.
We ask locally, who would be a great nominee this year for Kueker Award.
At first blush, Dr. Mary Okada from the Guam Community College comes to mind. Her passion for the construction field is evidenced by her full commitment to the Guam Trades Academy and revamping the trades curriculum on the Mangilao campus. She has been advocating for increased employment opportunities for the trades since she became President in 2007. Dr. Okada has received many accolades from the Guam Contractors Association and Micronesian advocacy groups over the past five years and is considered a influential advisor to the leaders of the region through the Micronesian Chief Executives Summit. When asked, Dr. Okada doesn't shy away from assisting many of the construction companies with her time to talk about the importance of apprenticeships or her passion for creating jobs through other professional skills training. Additionally, she is constantly backing groups like the Center for Micronesian Empowerment and the Guam Department of Education to bring more training opportunities to the broader workforce.
We think that the Guam NAWIC present Dr. Okada for consideration for this prestigious award.
Additionally, this past week the NAWIC Guam Chapter #381 hosted its Carnival Mixer. From my understanding it was a pretty good turnout by members and supporters of women in construction. There are many leaders of the group to commend for putting this event together. It was a great opportunity to network. It was a great opportunity to discuss the issues facing construction today. But importantly, it was yet another way to celebrate the influential women of Guam construction industry who have put much time and effort into creating more job opportunities for the greater Micronesian workforce. There was great sponsorships of the events and importantly the discussions across the Guam International Airport Authority Cargo Building where it was held were significant towards understanding the construction climate in the region today. Many discussions focused on how the region gets past the issues to get the Guam Buildup moving forward again. Other talks focused on business diversity to ensure that groups look to alternatives to build business during these lean times.
One thing is for certain, the Carnival Mixer was a huge success and many in attendance hope it is a catalyst to further engagement by NAWIC members and the region's construction industry.